Cuban primary schools in Santiago de Cuba receive donations from the Viva la Educación appeal

Primary school students in Santiago de Cuba receive donations of computers and school equipment as part of the Viva la Educación appeal.
The Viva la Educación (VLE) appeal was launched by the Cuba Solidarity Campaign and the National Education Union (NEU) in February 2022.
More than £100,000 was raised in the year-long appeal, enough to fill two forty-foot containers full of aid. The funds were spent on materials and equipment requested by the Cuban education union, including 300 refurbished PCs with new operating systems, hundreds of thousands of pencils, tens of thousands of exercise books, paints, paint brushes, graded paper, card, and other stationery.
Niurka González Obrera, General Secretary of the Cuban union of teachers, science and sports workers (SNTECD), said: “The donations from the Viva la Educación project will be sent to around 200 primary, secondary and special schools across the island.”
Six Havana schools were among the first to receive items, including five primary schools: Justino Báez, Hermanos Saiz, República de Colombia, María Díaz Verzón, Mario Muñoz Monroy and the secondary school Bartolomé Mazó Márquez. They all received a classroom-ready desktop computer running Windows 10 and a range of stationery supplies.
As part of the appeal, trade union activists from Unite raised over £25,000 to buy sports equipment including thousands of footballs, basketballs, and volleyballs.
In addition to the educational aid, the SNTECD received support from the appeal to service and communicate with the more than 400,000 teachers, science and sports workers who make up their membership. This included 40 laptops for regional and local offices, printers, ink, desk fans, paper, and even car parts to help keep the union functioning in these difficult times.
Find out more at vivaeducacion.org.uk/
The two shipping containers also carried more than 1,000 pairs of ballet shoes and dance equipment donated by the Royal Ballet, and hundreds of brand new musical instruments and reeds bought by the Music Fund for Cuba charity.
Speaking at the CSC TUC Congress fringe meeting in September, Cuban Ambassador Bárbara Montalvo Álvarez thanked everyone who had donated to VLE: “To all the trade unions and individuals who contributed to Viva appeal, I express our massive thanks,” she said.
CSC too would like to once again thank all the individual CSC members, trade union, organisations, and friends and supporters who donated, hosted fundraising events, and raised awareness of the appeal.

[@PabloGinarte]

Beautiful act of solidarity